Reassurance
by ColorfulLokitty
Summary: When Tony finds Loki out on the balcony one night he just can't help but question Loki as to why he isn't sleeping. Not satisfied with the answer, Tony brings it up with the team only for Loki to find out. Unfortunately, it doesn't end well. One-Shot Slight FrostIron near the end


**So, yeah, I wrote another one-shot. I wanted some comforting for Loki I guess and this is what popped into my head. XD**

**It's rated M for mentions of torture but that's all.**

**I (unfortunately) do not own any of the characters in this.**

**Hope you enjoy reading.**

* * *

_The darkness surrounded him, there was no escape from it. It seemed like it had been forever since he had seen any form of light and there wasn't even a star to light his way. All he knew was that he had made the wrong choice and he had almost instantly regretted it...But at the same time, he didn't. He was glad he had let go._

_Suddenly, he saw the smallest light in the distance, he turned to look at it but he hadn't a second before he slammed into something hard. The air was knocked out of him and it seemed as though every bone in his body had been broken as pain burned his every nerve. Everything went black again and all he could feel was the pain. It was different then when he had arrived on the barren piece of rock. It was lashing, burning, tearing, breathtaking. It made him want to forget, to regret everything he had done to get to this point...It made him want to die. And there was no way out. He'd never be able to leave, not even through death, that he was sure of. There wasn't the slightest hope._

_Everything around him snapped into focus then and he found himself once again chained to the posts that stuck out of the ground. The floor below him was stained with his blood as were the chains around his wrists and ankles. A figure stepped forward, looming over him and holding something long and thin. He automatically tensed, cringing back from the weapon he knew far too well. The figure moved to stand behind him and suddenly a searing pain tore through his back. It was soon followed by another and another until he lost count. The pain just kept building as his flesh and muscles were torn and blood dripped down his chin from him biting his lip to keep from screaming._

_Then it stopped and the same figure walked around to stand in front of him; the whip in its hand dripped with blood. He finally let go of his lip, dragging in harsh breaths as his eyes drifted up. A malevolent grin rose on the figure's face and it turned to leave allowing him to let out a long-held breath. A harsh chuckle rose from the figure and it turned back around; a second later the same horrible pain tore through his chest. He let out an agonizing scream, unprepared for the new torrent of pain._

Loki's eyes snapped open as he sat up straight in bed. His breathing was ragged and a cold sheen of sweat covered his pale skin. He pulled his knees up against his chest, wrapping his arms around them and laying his cheek on his knee. Closing his eyes, he forced his body to stop trembling, forcing the images down into the darker corners of his mind.

A few minutes later, his mind almost blissfully blank, he realized sleep was futile. Slipping out of bed, he pulled on a dark green t-shirt and some comfortable black pants. He took a deep breath before teleporting out onto the balcony on one of the higher floors of Stark Tower. The cool night air was comforting as a slight breeze drifted over his skin. Loki rested against the railing, listening to the sounds of the city below.

"Couldn't sleep, huh?"

Loki flinched and whipped around to see Stark standing behind him in the doorway of the balcony. He opened his mouth to reply, a convincing lie already formed before he paused. He was tired of lying and he was so tired of the whole team being convinced that he was nothing more than a cruel villain. It had only been a few months ago when Thor had brought him back to Midgard, apparently it was to be his punishment, to live and work with the Avengers. They'd all been horribly against the idea, offering multiple alternatives as to what to do with the god but Thor hadn't wanted any unneeded harm to come to him. Loki had almost wanted Thor to let them harm him; he didn't want Thor constantly giving him reasons to be forgiven. He couldn't just forgive Thor that easily after everything but that was what he wanted but wouldn't allow.

He realized he had paused far too long and the glaze cleared from over his eyes. "I...I don't really sleep much anyway, Stark," he said evenly.

Tony furrowed his brow, looking over Loki. The god rarely came out of his room voluntarily. Actually, Tony was pretty sure he could count on his hands how many times he had seen Loki willingly leave his room. But now, Tony could see just how tired and how...sick Loki looked. The dark circles under his eyes were very pronounced against the pallor appearance of his skin. "Why don't you sleep?" He asked gently.

Loki glanced at him from the corner of his eye. Why did the Avenger care at all? He had just expected Stark to make some smart-ass remark and return back inside. He sighed, keeping his gaze out over the city. "Night terrors," he replied shortly, glancing at him.

Tony's confusion only deepened. Why would the self-proclaimed-almost-ruler-of-Midgard be having nightmares? "Nightmares about what, Loki?" He asked, moving to stand beside him and folding his arms on the railing, looking out over the brightly-lit city as well.

"Why do you care, Stark?" Loki asked, standing up straight and flicking his gaze to him.

He shrugged. "I don't know. It just seems like if you, of all people, are having nightmares about something, that it's something we should be scared of too," Tony retorted, looking up at the taller man.

The god was quiet for a long moment and just as Tony was sure he wasn't going to reply, he did. "There are many other beings in and between the realms, Stark, and I've had the pleasure of meeting one of the more...malevolent ones," he said quietly.

The Avenger was quiet as he absorbed the new information. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"You aren't supposed to know," Loki mumbled, sending one last glance at Stark before he teleported back to his room. He sighed, sitting on the edge of the bed and holding his face in his hands. Why had he said anything to Stark at all? Loki already knew the answer though...He wanted them to know. He wanted the Avengers to know that not everything was as it seemed.

* * *

Loki didn't come out of his room until later the next evening. His floor was quiet and empty other than him so he made his way into the elevator as it was easier than constantly using his magic to teleport to various places in the tower. Only a moment later, the doors opened and he stepped out onto one of the higher floors where everyone tended to congregate.

The team was standing in the living room as Tony was explaining something to them but Loki didn't catch what he had said before everyone fell silent upon seeing him. Loki tensed immediately, his eyes narrowing on Stark who had paled upon seeing him.

"What did you say, Stark?" Loki snarled.

"I didn't say anything," Tony said, watching him almost cautiously.

Loki growled, taking a few steps forward. "You're lying."

Tony glanced back at Thor, seemingly for help but he wasn't offered any as Thor only gave him a sheepish grin. He sighed, looking back to Loki and nearly cringing back from the stern glare. "I thought that they should know about what you said last night, so I told them." Loki opened his mouth to reply only to have Stark cut in again. "Listen, don't start with the lies, get straight to the truth. We want to know about the holes in your story, who or what were you talking about?"

"And why should I?" Loki growled.

"Because whatever it is, Loki, if it's something that poses a threat then I can almost promise that we'll help you take care of it. Or at least, I know Thor and I will," Stark replied. Thor nodded in agreement. His arms were folded across his chest and he stood a little bit away, watching Loki quietly for once.

Loki was quiet for a moment before answering in a quiet tone. "Any attempts to fight against him are futile. The only way anyone going against him would live is if he allowed it. Winning is impossible."

"Loki, if you haven't noticed, that's what we do, the impossible," Steve said.

Another moment of silence passed until Loki answered in the same hushed tone. "Long ago, he was the leader of an attack on Asgard and after a long, horrible battle full of casualties, he was finally subdued. He is known by many names. The Mad Titan, the Avatar of Death-"

"Brother, surely you do not mean-" Thor started, his face pale.

"I do," he cut back in, sending a glare at Thor. "Thanos."

"Who's Thanos?" Clint cut in.

"If you'd allow me to speak for a moment, maybe I can get around to explaining," Loki snapped back. Clint growled, taking a step forward but Natasha placed a hand on his shoulder, steadying him. "Thanos is overall the leader of the Chitauri, higher even than the Other. He has mostly fallen into Asgardian myths and legend though he is very far from that. Not much is known about his background other than that he is a mutant of an already peculiar species. He enjoys causing pain and taking lives simply because he believes that Death is his mistress and that he must please her."

"And what does any of this have to do with you?" Bruce spoke up cautiously.

"Thanos wasn't...ready, for lack of a better word, to take the Tesseract himself. He had to use me."

"Wait, so you were being controlled like all of the people you touched with the glowstick of destiny?" Tony asked.

"No, I wasn't being controlled," Loki replied.

"So you did it voluntarily," Clint said in a matter-of-fact tone.

"No, I didn't do it voluntarily. I was offered a way out and so I took it. I knew I would be able to sabotage the plan discreetly anyway," he retorted.

"A way out of what?" Natasha asked.

"A way out of the torture I received every day for hours on end. After only a while of that, you'll do anything to get out," Loki mumbled. He noticed Tony and Natasha tense out of the corner of his eye but said nothing. The room had fallen into an uncomfortable silence only to be broken by Clint again.

"And why should we believe any of this? How are we to know you're telling the truth."

"Because why the Hel would I lie about something like torture? What would I earn from saying that I was tortured other than humiliation? And even then, why would I purposefully humiliate myself?" Loki snarled, glaring at him. "If you want proof, I can more than offer it."

"Good because I don't believe you, show me the proof," Clint retorted.

"Fine," Loki snarled. "What would you pref-"

"Why memories, of course," a deep voice said. Loki jumped, his hands automatically shaking as he felt a spark of magic in the room. The room fell silent again as the team looked at one another in confusion.

"Loki, what's going on?" Thor asked cautiously looking over to Loki. He furrowed his brow at the look on Loki's face...as though he were scared. "Loki?"

Loki still hadn't responded by the time that an image appeared on the flat screen television, only it wasn't anything that anyone would ever see on T.V.. It was dark and only a few figures even seemed to be in the image. Finally, a bit of light appeared and everything was thrown into perspective. The figures had only been outcroppings of rock but one of the outcroppings in particular stood out. It and the floor around it were stained with the dark hue of blood but that wasn't what had drawn their attention to it. There was something, rather, somebody hanging from thick metal chains there. The person was horribly skinny with bones jutting out in every possible area, his skin was pale, and his dark hair was matted. It was obvious that it was Loki. His chest was bare and the skin there was littered with various brushes, burns, and gashes, some of which were inflamed and almost all of which were still bleeding.

The view of the image suddenly seemed to zoom in and they could plainly hear what Loki was saying. "Thor...Thor please...I'm sorry, brother please...Help me," he sobbed, tears streaming down his face.

"Turn it off," Loki said. His eyes were glued to the image but the trembling of his body gave away his thoughts.

"I can't!" Tony nearly shouted, looking back at him.

Loki's gaze snapped to him and he opened his mouth to reply but the words seemed to die on the tip of his tongue as the same voice that had spoken earlier emanated from the image. "There is no help for you. No one will ever come for you, Jotun runt! You're not wanted or cared for; I can't even believe you're that ignorant as to believe you could ever be treated as an equal to anything. You're not even worthy of death, my pet, why else would you still be alive?" It growled before the image disappeared just as quickly as it had apparated.

Tony turned back towards Loki but he only caught a glimpse of the raven-haired man before he disappeared in a flash of green light.

"Jarvis, where'd Loki go?" He asked, glancing up at the ceiling.

"Mr. Laufeyson has reappeared on his floor in his bedroom, Mr. Stark," the AI replied

"Let me go, alone," Tony said in a stern voice. The team only complied, still in various stages of shock from what they had seen. Tony was grateful that they agreed so easily, surprised that Thor has agreed at all, as he entered the elevator and waited patiently for the doors to reopen on Loki's floor. He cautiously made it to Loki's bedroom and knocking on the door, he didn't wait for an answer before he walked in. Loki sat on the bed with his back facing him, his knees pulled up close to his chest and his chin resting on them.

"Loki?" Tony asked cautiously as he stood on the opposite side of the bed watching him. When the god didn't respond, Tony walked around and sat on the bed beside Loki. He placed a hand on his back.

"Are you happy now, Stark?" Loki growled, leaning away from his touch and not looking at him. He unfolded himself, his legs hanging over the edge of the bed.

Tony sighed. "No, I'm not. I wasn't expecting that. I'm sorry."

"Of course you weren't expecting it but it's your fault," Loki said.

Tony was taken aback. "And how exactly is it my fault?"

Loki's gaze slowly turned to him. "Because you had to continue. You had to mention last night to the team and you couldn't just leave me alone," he replied. "And now...he knows."

Tony furrowed his brow at the sudden change in Loki's demeanor. Unshed tears shone brightly in his eyes, he was tense to the point Tony thought he would shatter, and his hands were shaking slightly. "What do you mean 'he knows'?" He asked quietly.

"Thanos knows. He knows where I am and it's only a matter of time before he comes to re-retrieve me and bring me back th-there," Loki said, stuttering slightly as the trembling of his body increased. A few tears fell trickled down his face and he squeezed his eyes shut, shaking his head as if to disperse his thoughts.

Tony suddenly wrapped his arms around Loki and pulled him close and for some reason, Loki allowed it, maybe he just needed that kind of comfort right then. The god laid his head on Tony's chest and allowed a few more tears to fall. "Loki, I'm not going to let him take you back, I...I promise, Lokes. You're safe here with us," he said, trying to comfort him.

"Why would you wa-want to help m-me?" Loki stuttered, his hands balling up the fabric of Tony's shirt in his fists as tears dampened the fabric.

"Because I don't care who you are or what you've done but nobody deserves to be tortured like that."

"I'm just a mon-monster, surely monsters de-"

"No, Loki. You are not a monster and you just need to realize that for yourself," Tony replied, cutting him off before he could even finish his sentence.

There was a long silence then, before Loki spoke up softly, his voice somewhat muffled. "I don't want to go back."

Tony wasn't quite sure how to respond and he didn't for a moment; he just sat there, gently pulling his fingers through Loki's dark hair. "Don't worry, you're safe," he said quietly.

They fell silent again and neither of them wished to break that. Loki's shaking slowly subsided as they sat there on his bed and after a while, his breathing evened out as well. Tony furrowed his brow and pulled back slightly to look at Loki only to find that the god had fallen asleep. He gave a small smile, surprised that Loki would show him such a vulnerable side of himself.

He started pulling away slowly, planning only to lay Loki down and leave when the god's grip on him tightened slightly. Chuckling slightly, Tony stilled and took a moment deciding on what he was going to do until he gave a light sigh and laid down on the bed beside Loki. He waited another moment, hoping Loki had fallen back into a deep sleep before he tried pulling away again. And again, Loki's grip tightened on him, a bit more so than last time, and Tony knew that he wouldn't be able to leave without waking him. That wouldn't have bothered him before but know that he knew why Loki rarely got sleep, he wanted to allow the god to have as much as he could. Instead, Tony settled into the bed and slowly allowed his eyes to drift close as well but just as he was about to fall asleep, he felt a movement beside him.

Cracking his eyes open again, he found Loki had moved in closer to him, snuggling into his side. Tony wasn't sure why but the small gesture brought another smile to his face and he tentatively wrapped his arms around Loki again before falling back asleep.

* * *

**Yep, that's all. XD **

**There is just the slight FrostIron near the end but nothing else so uhm...yeah. XD**

**Anyway, reviews, suggestions, and thoughts are always welcome. If you have any ideas for some one-shots you would like to see written, feel free to mention them to me.**


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